


Homerun Love

by MarvelsDC22



Series: Homerun Love [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, College romance, F/F, F/M, Panic Attacks, Pining, Slow Burn, Softball, Volleyball, legal drinking age is 18, tw panic attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-20
Packaged: 2021-03-26 09:07:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 21,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30103593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarvelsDC22/pseuds/MarvelsDC22
Summary: Coming to college was a nerve-wracking experience all in its own, add in a cute roommate and some crazy friends and you’re set up for quite the adventure, how will your first year go?
Relationships: Carol Danvers/Maria Rambeau, James "Bucky" Barnes/Natasha Romanoff, Wanda Maximoff/Maria Hill, natasha Romanoff/reader
Series: Homerun Love [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2215071
Comments: 10
Kudos: 25





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally posted on my Tumblr MarvelsDC22 :)

Hopping out of your mother’s car, you looked around at the new campus that was now going to be your life for the next four years, University of Cambridge, you stretched some to help your sore muscles from the long, six hour drive “Honey, some help?” Your mother asked, jarring you from your thoughts and causing you to remember that you had to unpack your things “Right!” You said, rushing over to the back of the car and grabbing your very large suitcase while your mother grabbed your hamper with your bedding and all you needed hygiene wise for the next few months “This place is amazing” you said, looking around as you and your mother walked towards your dorm, you guys having come to orientation about three weeks before so you vaguely knew where you were going.

“In here” you said, gesturing to the set of doors that held your dorm room inside and holding the door open for your mother before you approached the front desk “Room number?” The girl asked, looking up from the book she had been reading “218” you said, looking over the email you had been sent with all the information you needed, watching as the girl typed on the computer in front of her before holding out a set of keys “Once you’re settled come back down, there’s some paperwork that needs signed” she said, watching as you took the keys from her hand, uttering a ‘thank you’ before you and your mother headed up the stairs, there being no elevator.

Once you got into your new dorm room, you saw you were the first one there so you had your mother set your stuff on the bed on the right side of the room and let your suitcase drop to the floor as you looked around the room “It’s not much, but I like it” you said with a small smile, looking at your mother who was already tearing up “Mom! It’s okay!” You said, going over to her and resting your hands on her shoulders, knowing this was hard on her since not only was she a single mother, but you were her only child “We still have the whole afternoon together” you assured her, watching as she nodded before she wiped her eyes “Yes, of course” she said, clearing her throat before she looked at you once more “What do you say we unpack some then get those papers signed and get some lunch?” She suggested with a smile that you couldn’t help but return, nodding before you both set to unpacking.

Later that day, you and your mother had finished a good portion of the unpacking and had headed downstairs, you finishing signing the papers before you two headed for the exit, you too focused on the conversation with your mother that you didn’t see the woman carrying a box that was almost larger than her until you ran into her, causing you, the box, and her to fall down “I am so sorry” you said quickly, pushing yourself up and looking to see her pushing the box back up “It’s okay, it was my fault” she said, you freezing at the sound of her voice and feeling your face start to burn when she finally looked at you, god she was gorgeous, that long red and blonde hair, those striking green eyes and an outfit that complemented her body very well even though it was only jean shorts and a black t-shirt with black converse “I’m Natasha” she introduced, holding her hand out to you and you pulling yourself out of your thoughts when you saw the movement “”Y/N… This is my mother, Stacy” you introduced, shaking her hand before gesturing to your mother who gave Natasha a small wave “Nice to meet you both… I should get to unpacking, I’ll see you around though?” She asked, giving you a smile that made your heart melt “Yeah, definitely” you said, waving to her which she returned before you watched her pick the box up and carry it inside, is this what it felt like to have a crush?

After the late lunch with your mother, you walked her back to her car since she had a long drive ahead of her “Drive safe, okay?” You said, opening the car door for her “I will, you be safe and have fun, okay?” She said, cupping your face and you feeling tears burning in your eyes as you saw her start to cry again “I will” you promised before engulfing her in a hug, fighting the tears back as you heard her cry into your shoulder, looking at her when she pulled back “Call me when you get home” you told her, watching as she nodded before she kissed your cheek “I love you, be good and please go out some, call me everyday and please be safe” she said, giving your hands a small squeeze before she got into the car “I love you too, mom” you said, watching as she blew you a kiss and waved before you watched her drive off, taking a deep breath before you headed back to your dorm.

When you got inside, you noticed that your roommates’ stuff was on the other bed and you saw their closet door open “Hello?” You said, shutting the door to the room before you peaked around the closet door and freezing when you saw a familiar flash of red hair “Oh hey! I guess we’re dormmates” Natasha said, giving you a gorgeous smile and her hair a bit everywhere from unpacking but she still looked amazing “I guess so” you said, smiling at her and stepping back when she went to step out of her closet, going over to your things and starting to unpack what little was left “You like her?” You heard Natasha ask, causing you to furrow your brows and look at her before you looked at what she was pointing at, it being a poster of Halsey “Of course, she’s one of the best” you said, having a bit of a defensive tone in your voice to which Natasha responded with a laugh “Hey, no judgement, I like some of her stuff” she chuckled, watching as you shook your head before you turned back to the clothes you were folding up.

“So, what are you studying?” You asked, looking at her and watching as she plopped down onto her bed, the boxes still on her bed shifting at the movement “Veterinarian Medicine, you?” She asked, smirking a bit at the shock on your face, you having not expected her to go for something like that, but you knew better than to judge a book by its cover “Law” you said, going and shoving your clothes into your drawers “I heard that’s a good program here, boring as hell though” she commented, taking one of the boxes and setting it on her lap so she could dig through it “Oh I know, it’s why I chose it” you joked, looking at her and watching as she shook her head with a laugh “We’re gonna get along great”.

xxxxx

Over the course of the next few days, you and Nat started to get close, you guys invited each other everywhere or at least told each other where you were going “What are you doing tonight?” You asked Nat as the two of you ate breakfast in the dining hall, having to speak up a little bit due to the many conversations happening around you “I have my first softball meeting” Nat said, taking a bite of her oatmeal and the two of you having class in about an hour “What about you?” She asked, glancing over when she heard her name being called before she gave you an apologetic look which you waved away “It’s okay, I’ll see you later” you said, watching as she chugged her orange juice before she stood up and headed over to her friends, saying a quick goodbye before she left with them, leaving you to finish your breakfast alone.

Getting to class was easier than the first few days, since now you were getting into a rhythm, you sliding into your Physics class just before the professor came into the room, getting yourself a seat in the back of the lecture hall before you pulled your notebook out, idly listening as Mr. Gonzales droned on about some formula that would help with homework and whatnot until you heard a ‘psst’, causing you to jump as you looked around, before you locked eyes with a blonde “Do you understand a thing he’s saying?” She asked, causing you to chuckle some before you shook your head “Not at all, it sounds like he’s muttering half the time” you whispered, watching as the woman smiled and laughed some “Carol” she introduced, holding her hand out and you took it with a smile “Y/N” you said, giving her hand a firm shake, the two of you quietly talking to one another throughout the rest of the class.

After your classes were finished, you rushed back to your dorm to change into your volleyball gear and put your bags away, rushing out of the room just as Natasha was coming in “Well hello there” she chuckled, taking a moment to look over your outfit, which was shorts and a t-shirt with some nice workout shoes, your volleyball shoes in your backpack on your back “Going to the gym?” She asked, raising a brow and you shook your head before checking the time on your watch “No, volleyball… I’ll see you after though!” You said before rushing down the hall, causing her to laugh once more before she headed into the dorm herself to change.

Once you got to the gym, you set your bag down and changed your shoes “Fancy seeing you here” a familiar voice said, causing you to look up as you tightened your laces “Hey, you on the team too?” You asked, giving Carol a smile which she returned as you stood up straight “I am, seems we’ll be seeing a lot of each other” she said, nudging you lightly before the two of you went to join the others, the coach giving a rundown before you guys split into groups of two, you and Carol serving the ball to one another “So, where are you from?” You asked, serving the ball to her and watching as she dove to get it “Louisiana, you?” Carol asked as she stood up, serving the ball to you after you tossed it back to her “Colorado” you said, just barely missing the ball as it hit just to the left of you “Come on, Y/L/N, you gotta do better than that!” Your coach scolded, causing you to sigh but mentally tell yourself to do better.

“Hey, don’t let her get to you” Carol said after practice, the coach having really been on your ass that practice “It’s just because you’re new” she said, knowing she got treated that way last year too “I just wasn’t on top of my game” you said, biting your lip as you threw your bag over your shoulder after switching your shoes out “I’m going to go run” you said, needing to take a moment to yourself “Okay, before you go, can I get your number? You know, for practices and school work” she said, holding her phone out to you which made you chuckle “Or to hang out?” You suggested, taking the phone from her and putting your number and name in it “Right… See you around, Colorado” she said, watching as you raised an eyebrow before you walked away with a laugh “Later, Louisiana” you said before heading up the stairs to the treadmills.

xxxxx

A few weeks later, you were starting to get into the swing of things and you and Carol were getting closer, you two being nothing more than friends especially after Carol had started talking with her old friend Maria again, which you were fine with since you had school and volleyball to focus on, that and you had a certain sophomore on your mind, not like she’d ever like you like that, but everything that had happened a few nights ago was still running around your head, how she had so casually laid her head in your lap as she helped you study for your physics midterm or the fact that you had woken up to her fast asleep beside you the next morning, you had never gotten out of bed so quickly, but you didn’t want to ruin anything, she had become your best friend here and you didn’t want anything ruining that.

But why did you feel your heart break when she introduced you to her new boyfriend, Bucky, he was a nice guy, seemed a little rough around the edges but overall a nice guy and you wanted to like him for Nat’s sake, but your heart tried telling you otherwise “Hey, you coming to the game tonight?” Natasha asked, pulling you from your thoughts as you looked up from your math book to look at her “What? O-Oh yeah, I’ll be there” you promised, giving her a small smile which she returned “Good, what are you studying now?” She asked, cocking her head to the side as you set your pencil down with a sigh, stretching some and having been studying for about an hour now “Trig, it’s… Much harder than I thought it’d be” you admitted, looking at her and watching her nod before sitting down next to you, taking the textbook out of your hands “What are-” “Come on” she said, grabbing your wrist and pulling you up.

“Nat, I have to study” you complained, letting her drag you to where you had tossed your shoes earlier “You need a break, you’ve been studying nonstop all week” she said, having you sit in her desk chair while she put your shoes on you “We are going for a walk and you’re going to stop thinking about school” she said, booping your nose as she stood back up and pulling you up, tossing your jacket at you before she pulled hers on, even though the cold never really affected her, being from Russia and all “Fine, fine” you said, knowing it was better to just not argue with her as you followed her out of the dorm room.

The two of you walked around campus for about an hour, talking about nothing and everything “So, how are you and Bucky doing?” You asked, glancing at her as you kicked a rock that was in your path “We’re okay, he’s really busy with baseball” she said, that being where they met since they had practice around the same time “Makes sense, it’s coming close to the end of the season” you said, shoving your hands in your pockets and shivering when a particularly harsh wind blew through, glancing over at Natasha as she tugged off her jacket and draped it over your shoulders, ignoring your protests “It is, but we’re making it work” she said, shoving her hands in her pockets as you snuck your arms through the sleeves of her jacket to wear it properly “That’s good… I’m glad” you said softly, taking a moment to bask in the scent of Natasha’s jacket, it smelled like vanilla and raspberries, that having become your favorite scent ever since you had first smelled the perfume on her.

“How about you? Anyone peak your interests?” She asked, nudging your side lightly and smiling at you, causing you to laugh as you shook your head and brushed your hair out of your face “No, not at the moment” you lied, looking at her and catching what looked like relief on Natasha’s face before it vanished as quickly as it appeared “I need to focus on school and volleyball, no real time for anything like that” you said, looking back ahead of you just as you saw your dorm building in the distance “We should head back… Your game starts soon and I have to study a bit more before I go” you said, unable to hide the disappointment in your voice “You’re right, but no more studying after that, at least for the next day” she said, reaching over and ruffling your hair which made you laugh as you ducked in an attempt to dodge her hand, although she moved to where she could reach, only for you to full on dodge and her to laugh as she wrapped her arms around you and held you there while she ruffled your hair “I yield!” You laughed, feeling her breath on your ear as she chuckled and feeling your face start to burn until she let go “I’ll race you” she said before taking off down the sidewalk “Hey! No fair!” You called before chasing after her.

At the game, you found yourself in the front row of the stands and you looked around, before you saw Carol “Hey, Carol! Over here!” You called, waving your hand and watching her look over and smile before she made her way over to you, Maria behind her before they sat down next to you “I thought I wouldn’t know anyone here” you said, taking a handful of the popcorn that Carol offered to you “I told you I’d come” she chuckled, nudging you with her elbow and setting her drink down by her feet as Maria got comfortable next to her “Did we miss anything?” Maria asked, looking at you and you shook your head “Nope, they just started” you said, looking at her then looking around, raising an eyebrow when you didn’t see Bucky, usually he was at the games “Looking for someone?” Carol asked, looking at you and you shook your head “Nope, not at all” you said, popping some popcorn into your mouth while Carol stared at you with a raised brow, but didn’t push it.

The game was going well, Natasha’s team was ahead by three points and currently, Natasha was up to bat “Go Nat!” You cheered, watching as she looked back at you and gave you a small smile before she focused on the ball, her managing to hit it first go before taking off, daring to push second until she ran back to first, opting to stay there instead, after a bit, her teammate hit the ball and she ran for it, making it to third before pushing hard for home, going for the slide when the catcher got in the way and a collision happened, everyone going silent when they heard a cry, everyone watching as the catcher got up carefully, revealing Natasha with her leg in an odd angle, you not even thinking about it as you bolted up and ran out to the field “Move” you said when someone tried to stop you.

When you got over to Natasha, her coach and the ref were already there “Hey, it’s okay” you said, kneeling down beside her and taking her hand when she gasped towards you “Fuck” she muttered, trying really hard not to break down in front of everyone “I know it hurts” you said, looking around and seeing medics coming your guys way, stepping back when they asked you to and watching as they loaded Natasha up in a gurney “I’ll meet you there” you promised her, watching as she nodded before they took off with her, you heading off the field and towards the parking lot “Where are they taking her?” Carol asked when her and Maria caught up with you “The hospital near here” you said, following Carol when she tugged on your arm, you getting into her car and trying to keep calm as she drove towards the hospital.

xxxxx

A few hours later, you were pacing in the hallway outside of Natasha’s room, her having just gotten out of surgery about an hour ago “What happened?” Bucky asked when he approached you, you having been a good friend and texted him about it “She was sliding into home base and there was a collision with her and the catcher, broken leg, she just got out of surgery an hour ago” you explained, looking at him and watching him nod before he went to sit down, you going back to your pacing and the two of you saying nothing the rest of the time.

After another hour, the doctor came out of the room once more “She’s going to be okay, she’ll be in a cast for a while, but she’s going to be okay… She’s not awake yet, but will be in a few hours, one of you can go in if you’d like” he said, looking at you and Bucky, you going to go in when you thought better of it “Go ahead” you told Bucky, him giving you a look that asked if you were sure “Your her boyfriend, go” you said, knowing that it was better if he was in there since… You didn’t know why, but you knew it was better that way, watching him nod before he went inside “When can she come back to school?” You asked, following the doctor as he walked down the hall “Hopefully in a few days” he said, looking at you and not saying anything else as he went on to his next patient, you sighing as you pinched the bridge of your nose before you went to sit down, knowing it’d be a while before Bucky left the room, so you got as comfortable as possible in the harsh hospital chair.

You don’t know when you fell asleep, but when you woke up, you saw that it was pitch black outside, checking the time on your watch, you saw that it was almost 3am “Shit” you grumbled, rubbing your face some as you stood up and stretched, peeking through the window of Natasha’s room and seeing Bucky not there, so you quietly slipped inside, looking around the dimly lit room that was pretty bare aside from a small dresser and a tv on the wall “What are you still doing here?” You heard a sleep-ridden voice ask, making you jump as you whipped your head and looked at Natasha, who looked as tired as she sounded “I fell asleep, Bucky left at some point, so I thought I’d pop in to look at your digs” you said, pulling a laugh from Natasha and you gave her a small smile “How are you feeling?” You asked, going and sitting in the chair next to her bed, even though your butt was sore from the last one.

“Like I’m full of drugs” Natasha chuckled, looking at you and coughing slightly, you looking around before spotting the water jug and cup on the small table next to the bed, pouring her a cup before helping her take a drink “Thank you” she said, clearing her throat some as you set the cup back on the table “How long have I been here?” She asked, looking at you and you checked your watch once more “Ehhhh, give or take eight hours” you said, knowing you got there about 7ish and looking at her when she sighed “You didn’t have to wait here for me” she said, looking at you and you reached out and grabbed her hand “I wanted to” you said, looking at her and gently running your thumb over the back of her hand.

Natasha looked at you and gave you a small smile “I see you’re still wearing my jacket” she commented, causing you to look down at yourself, having completely forgotten you were wearing it in the first place “You can have it back-” you said, standing up to take it off when she reached out and touched your hip since that’s all she could really reach at the moment “Don’t, keep it” she said, giving you a small smile as you nodded and slowly sat back down, the two of you sitting in silence, to the point you thought she had fallen back asleep.

“You look cute in my clothes” Natasha commented, causing your face to burn once more “That’s just the drugs talking” you chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of your neck “No, the drugs are just helping” Natasha said, looking at you again and you watching as her eyes started to flutter closed “You’re tired, you should get some sleep” you said, standing up and heading for the door “Please stay” you heard her whisper, causing you to stop with your hand on the door, a million scenarios running through your head “I don’t want to be alone” that breaking your resolve as you turned back around and sat down on the chair once more “I’m not leaving you” you promised, taking her hand in both of yours and watching as she gave you a sleepy smile before her eyes fluttered closed What have I gotten myself into? You thought to yourself as you watched her sleep until your own eyes started to flutter closed, your head gently resting on top of her arm as you fell back asleep.

xxxxx

The next morning, you woke up to a sore back and a bad crick in your neck, sitting up slowly, you stretched before standing up, careful to not disturb the sleeping woman in the bed as you walked around a bit, to try to get the soreness out, looking at your phone and seeing a message from Carol and one from Bucky

How is she? - Carol

She’s doing okay, drowsy from the drugs - You

I came by earlier, saw you both passed out, I left something for her on the table, make sure she gets it? - Bucky

Looking over at the table, you saw a vase full of flowers with a note in it, making you feel guilty as you thought of how you two must’ve looked with your hand holding hers as you slept with your head on her arm “I know that look, what’s on your mind?” You heard Natasha asked, making you jump since you hadn’t realized that she had woken up “What? Nothing… Bucky left you something” you said, pointing to the vase and watching as she looked back at it “That’s sweet of him” she said, smiling some and looking at you “I’ll have to thank him” she said, looking at you and watching as you shifted from foot to foot “Seriously, what’s wrong?” She asked, able to tell there was something going on.

“Last night” you finally blurted out, watching as she gained a look of confusion “What happened last night? Aside from me breaking my leg” she said, that sending a stab to your heart it was just the drugs talking you thought to yourself, you forcing yourself to keep a neutral expression as you shook your head “Nothing, I was just wondering how you felt after last night’s accident” you said, looking at her and watching her nod “Well, not great considering I won’t be able to play for a while now, but otherwise just slight pain” she said, looking at you and you nodded, opening your mouth to say more when the doctor came in “Am I interrupting something?” He asked, looking between the two of you “No, I actually have to get going… I’ll see you tonight” you said, looking at Natasha before grabbing your bag, giving her a quick wave before you stormed out of the room, pulling your phone out and calling someone “Carol… Can you come get me… Please?” You asked, the tears starting to fall as you headed for the exit.

When Carol came and got you, she didn’t pry and drove you back to the campus, when you got there though you couldn’t bring yourself to get out of the car just yet “What happened, Y/N?” She asked, reaching over and resting a hand on your leg, that breaking you right then and there “Hey hey hey, come here” she soothed, reaching over and pulling you into as good of a hug as she could over the center console, gently running her fingers through your hair as you cried into her chest, letting you get it all out before she asked you again what was wrong “Last night… Nat… She seemed like she was showing that she liked me, I knew better than to trust it, she was high on pain medicine and this morning, she didn’t remember any of it” you said, wiping the tears from your eyes as Carol squeezed your shoulder “Hey, it’s okay… It’s going to be okay” she said, not sure what else to say, but she knew she wouldn’t leave you like this, she knew it hurt and she was going to be there as long as you wanted her there.

xxxxx

A few days after the whole thing, Natasha was able to come back, you having not come back to visit her in the hospital, you couldn’t bring yourself to after that first night, you were currently sitting on your bed, studying for one of your exams when you heard someone fumbling with the lock, you finally standing up after a few moments and opening the door, seeing Bucky holding Nat’s keys, him having been trying to open the door with Nat standing behind him on crutches “You could’ve knocked and asked for help” you said, taking one of Nat’s bags from him as you let the two of them in “Right” Bucky said, feeling embarrassed as he ran a hand through his hair and standing there awkwardly as the atmosphere became tense “I’m gonna-I’m gonna go” he said, gesturing towards the door before he gave Nat a quick kiss which only sparked your jealousy, but you didn’t let it show as you watched him head out, leaving you and Nat alone.

You stood there in awkward silence, playing with your fingers as Nat settled down onto her bed “I’m sorry I didn’t-””You never came-” the two of you said at the same time, causing you both to stop and stare at one another before you both cracked up “You go first” Nat said, looking at you and you nodded as you bit your lip and looked down at your feet “I’m sorry I didn’t come back to see you, I have no excuse for it… I’m sorry” you said, looking at her and catching the flash of hurt go across her face “It’s not okay, I hope you know… I… You’re my best friend and you not coming back hurt” she said honestly, looking at you and you nodded “I know and I feel terrible for it, I’ll make it up to you though, that I promise” you said, looking at her and watching as she stared at you before she smiled “You better” she said, reaching over with her good foot and poking your leg with it which made you smile in return “After I study for these exams” you said, laughing when you heard her groan as she flopped down on her bed, grumbling about how you studied way too much.

The next morning, you got up and saw Natasha struggling to pull on some sweats “Here, let me help” you said, forcing yourself up and out of bed before going over to her and batting her hands away from the sweats, letting her rest her hand on your shoulder as you tugged them up and over her hips “Thank you” she said, looking at you and you gave her a sleepy smile “Of course, do you need help getting to class?” You asked, knowing she had class about an hour before you and you didn’t mind helping her beforehand “I’ll be fine” she assured, you stepping back when she reached for the shirt on her bed, her currently wearing a sports bra and the sweat pants you just helped her pull on, which you just realized and you felt your face burn “Okay, if you need me, I’ll be studying before my first class” you said, turning to go back to your bed and grabbing your notebook “No no nope, you’re helping me” she said, jumping on her good leg over to your bed and pulling you up and out of the bed while you laughed and dropped your notebook onto your bed “Let me get dressed”.

Heading down the stairs what a slow process due to Nat still learning to use her crutches, but you did all you could to help her, shouldering her bag on your back since you refused to let her carry it “I can carry it” she claimed, but you being you, you ignored her and headed out the door before she could complain more “How are you feeling today?” You asked as the two of you made your way across campus, the morning air being refreshing and quiet “It still hurts, but the pain meds help” she said, walking beside you, occasionally stopping to readjust her grip, the crutches being killer on her arms already “That’s good, they’re doing their job” you said, shoving your hands in your pockets “Are you going home for winter break?” You asked, looking at her and winter break being a few weeks away.

“Nah, I don’t have anything to go back to really, I was just going to stay here and hang out, maybe work out some if I’m out of this stupid thing” she said, gesturing to her cast “Well, if you wanted to-” “Hey babe! How are you feeling?” Bucky interrupted, causing you to deflate some as you watched him jog to catch up to the two of you “Better” Natasha said, giving him a smile and a kiss when he leaned in “I can help her the rest of the way” Bucky said, holding a hand out to take her bag “Oh… Uh, sure” you said, knowing that you couldn’t really turn him down and taking Natasha’s bag off your back, not catching the frown that she directed towards him, not like he noticed either “I have to go study anyway” you said, handing the bag off to him and saying your goodbyes “Y/N-” Natasha said, but you were already rushing off back towards the dorms.

When you got back to the dorm, you let out a shout of frustration after you shut your door, stupid Bucky coming in and ruining your nice morning with Nat- stop that you thought to yourself, running a hand over your face he’s her boyfriend, he has every right, she’s not yours you reminded yourself, sighing, you went and grabbed the notebook you had dropped earlier when Nat pulled you off your bed and went back to studying, doing your best to focus on that instead of everything that had just happened.

xxxxx

That Friday night, you came back from your volleyball practice and all but collapsed onto your bed, not caring if you were sweaty and gross “The coach hates me” you groaned when you felt Natasha’s gaze on you “She doesn’t hate you” Natasha said, pushing herself up and plopping down onto the bed beside you, running her fingers gently through your sweaty hair, not caring about the stench or the sweat since there was a time when this was vice versa and besides, she honestly didn’t care about all that when it came to you “Yes she does, everything I do is wrong!” You complained, closing your eyes as you felt her fingers start to massage your scalp.

“I don’t think it’s that bad” Natasha said, watching as you pushed yourself up onto her elbows and looked at her as her hand dropped to the bed “Nat, she literally picks me out of the crowd! Today, I hit the ball wrong and she yelled at me, then two minutes later Sam does the same thing and she just tells them that they’re doing their best!” you complained, not even realizing you were pouting until Natasha booped you on the nose “She’s giving you a harder time because she knows just how good you are” she said, her having seen you play and you were amazing at it.

You huffed and rolled over onto your back “I don’t want to be good anymore” you whined, making Natasha laugh as she looked at you “I know it sucks, but she’s trying to push you to the best you can be, I know you can do this” she said, placing her hand on yours by your side and giving it a small squeeze “Why do you have to be right?” You pouted, looking at her and your heart pounding in your chest at the simple touch “Because I always am, now go shower” she said, making a fake face of disgust “You stink” she said, watching you roll your eyes before you sat up “There are days when you came back smelling worse, remember that, Romanoff” you teased, feeling your face burn when she playfully smacked your ass “Just go shower, Y/L/N” “Yes mother” you retorted, grabbing your clothes and heading out of the room while Natasha laughed.

Later that night, you were working on some homework while Natasha played on her phone, playing some music through the bluetooth speaker you guys had in the room, you looking up and catching a frown on her face “Everything okay over there?” You asked, raising a brow as you set your notebook and pencil down “Yeah…” She said, you able to tell she was lying and going over to sit on the bed beside her “What’s wrong?” You asked, nudging her arm that she was resting on and watching as she sighed and handed her phone to you, you looking at the conversation between her and Bucky “He invited you to go home with him over break? What’s wrong with that?” You asked, unsure what she was upset over as you handed the phone back to her, her letting it fall down onto the bed before she resituated and laid her head in your lap, this not being an unusual thing as you got comfortable and your hand automatically found her hair, gently running your fingers through it.

“Going home with him means meeting his parents and meeting his parents makes this whole thing more official” Natasha admitted, causing you to furrow your brow as you looked down at her “I thought this was already all official?” You asked, not sure where she was going with this since you had assumed that they were together together “Well, we were… But lately things have been getting rocky and I don’t know what we are” she said, closing her eyes as you ran your fingers through her hair “What happened?” You asked, her having not told you much when it came to Bucky and it wasn’t like you were dying to hear about them together “So, before the game when I broke my leg we got into a fight, a huge one… Then I guess we made up when I was in the hospital, but then the other day when he pushed you away… I don’t know, it pissed me off” she said honestly, looking up at you and reaching up to push your hair out of your face.

You nodded and thought for a bit “Maybe this is something you guys should talk about? I mean, I wasn’t too keen when he took over the other day, but he didn’t seem to realize what he did was making you upset” you said, looking at her and feeling your heart pound when she brushed the hair out of your face, but you pushed it back since she needed you to listen and be there, not letting your crush take over “What would I even say? You pushing my best friend off like that pissed me off?” She asked, sighing as she let her hand drop and you fighting back a wince with that reality, you were her best friend, that’s it and that’s all you would ever be “Try saying that you didn’t appreciate that he took over in that situation, that it upset you that he pushed a friend away” you suggested, watching as she thought for a moment before she nodded “You’re right… Thank you” she said, looking up at you and you smiled “Of course, it’s what I’m here for” you said, going to push her up so you could get back to work when a hand on your arm stopped you “Can you stay here? You can do your work here” she said, looking up at you with a pout and who were you to deny that face? “Of course, I’ll be right back over” you said, grabbing what all you needed before returning to your spot and the two of you spending the rest of the night talking as you worked and she went back to messing with her phone.

xxxxx

A few days later, you could tell that Natasha and Bucky had talked it out since you saw him around a lot more and she seemed happier, currently you were walking behind them, in step with Wanda, Natasha’s teammate who had the next class with you, the two of you talking about your upcoming project “Are you busy tonight?” You heard Bucky ask Nat, who looked at him and shook her head “Nope, I’m free for the night” she said, her holding his pinky since that was all she could really hold for the time being with the crutches and everything “Tony’s having a party tonight, wanna be my plus one?” He asked, looking at her and Nat gave a quick glance back at you as she struggled with an answer for a moment “Yeah, sure” she smiled, looking back at him and biting her lip “Can Y/N and Wanda come?” She asked, glancing back at you two and the two of you raising an eyebrow “Oh…” Bucky said, seeming to deflate before he perked back up “The more the merrier!” He said, giving you two a smile which made the situation even more awkward since he never smiled at anyone.

You watched the scene in front of you for a moment before you felt Wanda lightly nudge your shoulder and nod her head towards the fork in the sidewalk “Yeah, we’ll see you guys there… We’re gonna head this way” you said, wincing slightly at how stupid that sounded before you made a quick getaway with Wanda “What the hell was that?” She asked, glancing back at Bucky and Natasha who kept walking and talking “I don’t know, Nats never done something like that” you said, knowing she had never been afraid to go with Bucky anywhere, so you didn’t know what was wrong “I’ll ask her about it later” you said, shouldering your bag before the two of you continued down the sidewalk, getting to your history class five minutes early.

Later that night, you got back from your practice and set your bag down on the floor by your bed, your dorm room door still open since you needed to grab your clothes to shower “There you are!” You heard someone say, you turning and raising a brow “In my own dorm, who would’ve thought?” You teased, looking at Wanda who rolled her eyes and crossed her arms as she leaned against the doorframe “I need your help deciding what to wear tonight” she said, the two of you having become close when you guys got partnered and it helped that you both knew each other a bit through Nat “You’re asking the wrong person” you laughed, your fashion sense definitely not being the best, going to your dresser and pulling some undergarments out of it “I have no one else to ask, Sasha’s out” she said, referring to her roommate and going over and pouting “Why do you need help? It’s like you’re trying to impress someone-” you said, catching the blush that was appearing on Wanda’s face “You’re trying to impress someone!” You squealed, Wanda’s eyes widening as she reached out and covered your mouth with her hand “Shhhh! I don’t think Canada heard you!” Wanda hissed, watching as you laughed and licked her hand, making her quickly pull her hand away with a look of disgust “Will you help me?” She asked, wiping her hand on her jeans as you nodded “Yes, now let me go shower” you said, grabbing your towel before heading out of your room.

Once you were out of the shower, you tossed your dirty clothes into your hamper before you went to Wanda’s room, barely knocking before the door was swung open and you were pulled in “So, what are the options?” You asked, following her over to her bed where she had three dresses set out, each more extravagant than the last “Wanda” you said, starting to laugh but biting it back when she turned a glare on you “Okay, but this is just a college party! You don’t need to be fancy” you said, going over to her closet and digging through it, finding a nice pair of skinny jeans and a nice looking blouse that you knew showed off her curves and grabbing her deadly looking heels that she wore all the time “Here” you said, handing it all to her and watching as she looked at you skeptically “Trust me” you said, watching as she stared a moment longer before sighing and turning to change.

Waiting for a bit, you heard Wanda clear her throat, you having turned around to give her some form of privacy “You look great!” You exclaimed, giving her a smile since you weren’t lying, she did look amazing in that outfit “You think she’ll like it?” Wanda asked, running her hands over imaginary wrinkles “She? You gotta give me a name here” you said, looking at her and watching as she bit her lip before she sighed “Maria” she admitted, looking at you and you raised a brow “The one on your team? Hill?” You asked, knowing most of their team, but you only close to Natasha and Wanda “Yes” she said, looking at you and you smiled before going over to her and throwing an arm over her shoulders “Of course she will” you assured, giving her a small squeeze before checking the time “I should go get ready, I’ll be back” you said before heading out of her room, you just changing into some nice casual clothes before you and Wanda headed out.

When you got there, the fraternity was already bopping, the party was in full swing “Wanda! Y/N!” You heard someone call, looking over when you saw Natasha and Bucky heading towards you, Bucky holding two cups seeing as Natasha couldn’t hold hers with the crutches “Hey, sorry we’re late” you apologized, looking at them and watching Natasha smile at you “You’re fine, we were about to go sit for a bit, but you guys go on in and have some fun!” She said, giving you a smile and reaching over to squeeze your arm before her and Bucky headed outside to get some air “Well, looks like it’s just-me….” You said, sighing when you turned around and saw that Wanda had vanished, probably going to find Maria, so you just headed for the kitchen to get yourself something to drink, not alcoholic since you had a game tomorrow and you’d rather not be drunk.

Leaning back against the counter, you sipped your coke and scrolled through your phone, managing to stay under the radar for a few minutes until you saw a pair of shoes in front of yours “Well, don’t you look good” you heard someone say, causing you to look up and see none other than Tony Stark, he was the big man on campus “Uh, thanks” you said, standing up a bit straighter as you pocketed your phone “Tell you what, I’m going to offer you the chance of a lifetime” he said, taking the space beside you as you looked around, trying to find someone to get you out of this mess “No thanks” you said, going to just walk away when he grabbed your wrist “Come on, it’ll be fun” he said, getting close enough for you to smell the alcohol on his breath “No” you said, trying to pull your arm away but he just tightened his grip, you about to say something else when someone stepped between you and Tony “They said no, Tony… Go find someone else to screw” Bucky said, glaring at him and watching as Tony raised his hands in surrender before backing off.

Once Bucky was sure he was gone, he turned around and looked at you “You okay?” He asked, looking at you and you nodded, glancing over at Natasha who was standing off to the side, giving you a worried look “I’m fine… Thanks for stepping in there” you said, rubbing your wrist and looking at him, watching as he gave you a smile and rested a hand on your shoulder “Of course, Tony doesn’t understand personal space” he sighed, looking over at Natasha who gave him a thankful smile “You sure you’re okay?” He asked, looking at you and you nodded “I’m fine, I’m probably just going to head out… Thanks again, Bucky” you said, giving him a smile before you walked around him and headed for the entrance, looking around to see if you could find Wanda since she was your ride home, catching her in the corner with Maria, making out with her “Guess I’ll walk” you muttered, glad that she got her girl, but not happy that you had to walk home now.

Later that night, you had showered and were relaxing in your bed when your phone vibrated

Hey, you doing okay? - Nat <3

I’m fine, I’m back at the dorm… Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do - You

You know me, I live on the edge of danger :p - Nat <3

Laughing, you rolled your eyes and went to toss your phone to the side when your phone vibrated again, this time it being a call from Carol “What’s up?” You asked, leaning back against your headboard “Did you hear our coach got fired?” She asked, causing you to raise a brow “What? Really? Why?” You asked, sitting up and unable to feel happy that she was gone “Got caught drunk driving, caused an accident” “Do you know who we’re getting?” You asked, messing with a loose string on your blanket “Some guy named Nick Fury, guess we’ll see tomorrow at the game” Carol said, you hearing her roommate say something before she sighed “I have to go, I’ll see you tomorrow, just thought you should know” she said and you smiled “Thanks for the heads up, tomorrow will be interesting” you said before the two of you said your goodbyes and you hung up, plugging your phone in before laying down, deciding to just get to bed early.

When you got up the next morning, you saw that Natasha was still passed out in bed, it being a Saturday so you weren’t going to try and wake her, getting ready for your game as quietly as possible before you slipped out of the room “I have time for breakfast” you said, seeing you still had an hour before you had to get to the gym to warm up, heading off towards the cafeteria.

Getting to the gym, you walked over to the rest of your team who were talking in hushed tones, figuring they were freaking out about this being the game that decided if you guys were going to finals or not “What’s going on?” You asked, looking at Sam who was standing on the edge of the group “Just talking about our new coach, he’s scary, dude” she said, nodding her head over to where a man was standing, the man being a tall black guy with an eyepatch, he had a pissed off look on his face as he talked to one of the refs about something, he was wearing all black and looked very buff from where you were standing “I mean, yeah, but maybe that’s just him” you suggested, looking at Sam who looked at you with wide eyes “You’re crazy” she said, the two of you staring at one another before you broke out into laughter and joined the rest of your team.

“Alright, as you all know, I am your new coach, you guys will call me Fury and nothing else, not coach, not Mr. F, not dude, Fury” he said, all of you seeming to straighten up when he approached you guys “Now, this game will be me watching you guys, seeing how you guys work together, do not disappoint me” he said sternly, earning him a bunch of head nods before he sent you guys to decide on what to do for this game “Y/N, we need you to serve” Carol said, her being the team captain and knowing that while you had never served in a game before, Chloe wasn’t there to serve but you were their second best “Carol-” “You can do this” Carol said, reaching over and taking your hand in hers, giving your hand a squeeze and you took a deep breath before you nodded “Okay” you said, listening as Carol went over who was going to do what and what the plan was currently.

Heading onto the court, ball tucked under your arm, you looked around, your gaze settling on a certain redhead that was in the front row with her entire softball team, them taking up a third of the seating on that side of the gym, the two of you locking eyes and her giving you a smile as she waved which you returned nervously, heading over to your spot behind the line and waiting for the ref to give you the okay before you took a deep breath, giving yourself a moment to focus as you closed your eyes, opening them and your focus shifting to the game at hand before you threw the ball up and served it over the net, you listening and watching as your teammates moved around your side of the court, Carol spiking the ball over the net and to the floor as a girl from the other side tried to dive for it “Yes” you said quietly, giving Carol a high-five as she turned to you in excitement before the game continued.

At halftime, you took a moment to drink some water before you glanced over and saw Natasha waving you over, Bucky sitting next to her, eating a hotdog and you couldn’t help it, you were excited to see both of them, even though Bucky was with your crush, he was really sweet and after last night, you saw his true colors and you knew Natasha picked a good one “Hey!” You said, smiling at them when you approached, Natasha standing up and pulling you into a tight hug while you fist bumped Bucky “You’re doing amazing out there!” Natasha said, smiling at you and you smiled back “Thank you, didn’t expect to see you here, let alone your whole team” you said, gesturing to the empty spots above her since all of them were taking the down time to get something to eat or stretch their legs “Well, I wouldn’t miss any of your games, you didn’t miss mine and they wanted to repay the favor” she said, giving you a smile which you returned and couldn’t stop your heart from skipping a beat like it always did when she smiled at you, the three of you talking for a bit until Carol called you back over “I’ll see you guys after?” You asked, smiling when they nodded before you took off back to your team.

26-25, that was the score right now with your team leading by one point, it had been a close match the entire game, now it was all on you to try to finish this game, if you missed that would be a point for the other team and you didn’t want that “You got this, Y/N!” You heard Natasha cheer, that causing the rest of the softball team to start cheering and you could swear you heard Bucky cheering as well, you took a moment and centered your focus on the game, blocking any and all noises until you opened them again and served the ball smoothly over the net, the ball getting bounced back and forth until the opposing teams spiker, spiked the ball “I got it!” You called, diving down and barely managing to hit the ball, your arms red and on fire from the amount of speed behind that spike, but you ignored it as you popped back onto your feet as quickly as possible, your save setting Carol up to spike it back over, it hitting the ground since they hadn’t expected you to be able to get the ball in time, the whole gym erupting into cheers as they announced your team winning, you running over to Carol who caught you in her arms when you jumped at her, this being a custom with you two when you won, the two of you cheering as Carol spun you before setting you back down as the rest of the team rushed over to you guys in excitement, you guys were going to finals, nothing could stop you now.

When you came back from the locker room, you felt the exhaustion start to hit you as you threw your bag over your shoulder, looking at your phone and seeing it was almost noon, the game having run longer than you had planned “Good job out there” you heard someone say, looking up from your phone and seeing Natasha and Bucky standing there “Oh, thanks, I wasn’t expecting to serve the whole game” you said honestly, looking at them and giving them a small smile as you put your phone in your bag “Well, you did great” Bucky said, giving you his usual neutral expression “Thanks” you said, readjusting the bag on your shoulder “Lets head out” Natasha suggested, nodding her head towards the exit and you nodded, fixing your jacket that you had on since it was freezing outside with it being almost Christmas time.

“So, break is in two weeks, you doing anything, Y/N?” Bucky asked, holding the door open for the two of you before he caught up with Natasha, holding her pinky finger as per usual and walking in front of you “I’m going home, mom was upset I couldn’t make it home for Thanksgiving, so I gotta make it up to her” you said, giving a small laugh “How about you?” You asked, watching as he smiled and looked over at Natasha “Well, Natasha’s coming home with me, so we’re going to spend some time with my family” he said and you couldn’t help but feel your heart sink since Natasha hadn’t told you that “I see, I’m sure you guys will have fun” you said, keeping quiet the rest of the way back to the dorm, Bucky oblivious to the change in you but Natasha caught onto it and she felt guilty since she had completely forgot.

Getting back to the dorm, you dropped your bag onto your bed before you went digging for some clean clothes “Y/N, I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you” Natasha said when she got into the room, shutting the door behind her as she went over to you, you hearing her crutches with every step she took “It’s okay, you don’t have to tell me everything” you said, not looking at her and upset with her but she honestly didn’t have to tell you everything just because you were best friends “I should’ve though, I came to you for advice on it and I didn’t tell you what happened after that” Natasha said, trying to move into your field of view since you were avoiding her gaze “Dammit, will you look at me?!” She finally snapped, causing you to jump before you finally looked at her, you looking drained and tired “It’s fine, Natasha… You’re going to have a blast… I have to go shower” you said, looking at her before you grabbed your towel and headed out of the room for the showers, the two of you not saying anything to each other for the rest of the night.

xxxxx

The whole next week, you were busy with practices and studying for exams that you hardly saw Natasha, especially with her now spending all her time with Bucky or getting ready for exams herself, you wouldn’t admit it, but it was taking a toll on you, not being able to speak with her or hang out with her except for the few moments you guys got before you passed out, even then you guys didn’t say much.

Sitting at your desk, you tapped your pen on your desk, not even really focusing on the words in front of you with your mind racing a million miles a minute, your foot bouncing without you realizing it when you smelt smoke, causing you to raise an eyebrow as you set your pencil down and looked around, not finding anything so you poked your head out the doorway, finding nothing there you closed the door and went to open the window to see if there was smoke coming from out there but there was nothing, then you felt it, breathing felt ten times more difficult and you realized your hands were shaking “What-What’s happening?” You asked yourself, feeling your panic rise even more and felt like the room was getting smaller and smaller the more you paced, so you squeezed yourself into the corner on your side of the room and sat down, freaking out since you didn’t know what was happening which was only making it worse.

When Natasha came into the room a few moments later, she struggled with shutting the door until she saw you in the corner, tears rushing down your face and grasping at your chest as you struggled to breathe, her letting her crutches drop to the floor as she rushed over to you as quickly as she could, ignoring the pain that shot up her foot in protest before she kneeled down in front of you “Hey hey hey, look at me” she said, gently resting her hands on your knees and when you didn’t look at her, she gently reached out and grasped your chin, forcing you to look at her and seeing your eyes soften with relief when you saw it was her.

“Take deep breaths with me, okay?” She said, having you breathe with her for a few moments until you calmed down enough to get your breathing under control “Five things you can see” she said, gently nudging you when you gave her a look of confusion “Uh, you-” looking around some “The beds, nightstands, window, desks” you answered her, locking eyes with her once more “Five things you can hear” “You, the cars outside, the birds, the air conditioning, my music” you watching as she smiled at you before leading you through two more of those “Feel better?” She asked once you seemed to relax more, one of her hands having laced into one of yours at some point as you nodded “Yeah… I was so scared” you admitted softly, looking at her and she nodded, giving your hand a squeeze “Panic attacks are a scary thing, I’m glad I came back in time” she said, giving your hand one last squeeze before she backed up a bit so you could stand, you in turn helping her up before you went and handed her her crutches.

“Do you want to talk about it?” She asked, taking the crutches and following you over to your bed, sitting down next to you after you moved some books out of the way that you had tossed there earlier “It’s a little bit of everything, exams are coming up and finals are Sunday then I go back to my hometown… The only good thing there is my mother” you admitted, wiping your tears away with the sleeve of your hoodie, feeling Natasha wrap an arm around you and making your heart skip a beat “Then there was us not talking or seeing each other” you said softly, feeling Natasha give you a small squeeze “I know, I’m sorry… Things have been weird for me lately” she said, resting her head on top of yours when you rested yours on her shoulder “But, how about after your game Sunday we have a girls day, no class, no sports, no boys, just us” she suggested, feeling you nod which made her smile “Can we stay like this a little longer?” You asked softly, feeling her tighten her grip on you “Of course” she said softly, holding herself back from kissing your head, why was she feeling this way? She had Bucky and liked him a lot, but then there’s you… Did she like you as more than a friend?

xxxxx

That Sunday couldn’t of come any faster, you were tired of hearing Fury shout at you guys for not trying, but you knew this was just him and he was actually a good person outside of this job, you were having a nice sleep until your alarm jolted you up “Ugh” you groaned when you saw it was 5am, shutting your alarm off and letting your phone fall into your lap, looking over when you felt eyes on you and seeing Natasha looking at you “Did I wake you?” You asked, feeling guilty as you quickly got out of bed “No, I’ve been up” she assured, sitting up in her bed and watching as you stuffed your things into your bag, going to change as soon as you finished “You ready?” She asked, watching as you grabbed your uniform out of your laundry basket and sniffed it since you had forgotten it was there, breathing a sigh of relief when it didn’t smell too terrible, nothing some perfume couldn’t hide “No, I feel like I’m going to throw up” you admitted, pulling your pajamas off and feeling Natasha’s eyes on you the entire time, assuming it was just her showing she was paying attention “You got this, I’ll be there to cheer you on” she promised, watching as you tugged your uniform on before turning to her “Really?” You asked, smiling at her which she returned “Really really, now go finish up and we’ll get breakfast” she said, watching you head out and releasing the breath she didn’t know she was holding, her heart hammering in her chest from you just looking at her. Is this what actual love felt like?

After you guys finished breakfast, you had to get onto the bus and she was driving herself to the location, you sat down next to Carol with a sigh which made her raise a brow “Everything alright over there?” She asked, reaching over and ruffling your hair “I was up late studying, just tired” you said, looking at her and she rolled her eyes “Of course you were, here” she said, digging into her bag and handing you one of her energy drinks since she always brought a spare if needed “Thanks” you said, opening it and taking a sip before you looked at Carol again “Have you noticed Natasha acting different?” You asked, watching as she furrowed her brow in thought “I mean, yeah… Did something happen between you two?” She asked, only noticing the change when you were around since Natasha’s focus would be on you the whole time “We got into an argument, but we fixed that earlier this week” you said, taking another sip of your drink and shrugging, resting your head against the window while Carol stared at you, unable to believe how oblivious you were until Sam called her name and her attention was shifted, leaving you to your thoughts.

When you got there, you felt anxious as you hopped off the bus, wringing your hands out as you waited for the rest of your team before you all headed inside, away from the cold outside world and into the huge gym that would be your court “Wow” you said, looking around and looking at Carol who nudged you and smiled at you before Fury came into the gym and set his large bag down “Alright, todays the day… I’ve been hard on you guys this whole last week, but do know that I am proud of each and every one of you” he said, actually sounding sincere as he spoke “Does this mean you’ll be easier on us, Fury?” Jasmine asked, raising her hand while Fury turned his attention to her “I recognize the council has made a decision” he said, gesturing to all of you before he continued “But given it’s a stupid ass decision, I’ve elected to ignore it” he said, earning laughs from the others while Jasmine blushed and held back her own laughter “Now, go out there and kick some ass” Fury said before going to set up his spot on the sidelines.

It was a rocky start to say the least, you had accidentally hit Carol in the back of the head on your third serve, which you apologized profusely over, to which she just laughed it off, telling you it was an accident and she was okay, no one was organized today and everything was going downhill, you guys were five points down as soon as halftime hit “Get it together, me” you muttered, rubbing your face some “You’re doing great out there” you heard someone say, causing you to turn around and drop your hands from your face “Thanks, we need to get it together though” you said, looking at Natasha who gave you a smile “You will, it’s just a rocky start, you got this” she said, giving you a smile and you returned it before you engulfed her in a hug, just needing some sort of reassurance, her wrapping one of her arms around you “Thank you for coming here to watch, it means a lot” you said softly, resting your head on her chest “I wouldn’t miss it for the world” Natasha said, unable to stop herself from kissing your head before you pulled back “I should get back out there, I’ll see you after the game?” You asked, looking at her and grinning when she nodded before she watched you run into the gym, leaving her to her own thoughts.

There was no way you guys could catch up, it was 24-18, all they needed was one more point, the most you guys could do is make it as impossible as you possibly could for them to get that point, you guys trying your damnedest until you dove for a spike and hit it back up, Carol trying to hit it back over the net, but the other teams spiker spiked it again, nailing you right in the face since it happened before you could even think to get up, you letting out a cry of pain as you covered your face and rolled over onto your side “Hey, look at me” Carol said, her being at your side in an instant as she rolled you onto your back and moved your hands, blood seeping from your nose and your face red from the impact “Let’s get you up and to the side” Fury said when he got over to you, tears burning your eyes from the pain and you trying to stand on your own, only to fall over from the dizziness “We need to get them to the hospital” Fury said, looking around and trying to decide what to do “I can take them” Natasha said, her standing off to the side “I just need help getting them in the car” she said, knowing she couldn’t be much assistance when it came to walking at the moment, Fury nodding before he helped you up and out of the gym.

Once you were in the car, Fury told Natasha which hospital to go to and that he would be there when the game was over before he sent her off to take you to the hospital “Hey, stay awake” she said, seeing you were starting to dose while you held the rag to your nose and reaching over to grip your leg to wake you “We’re about ten minutes away” she told you, going to try to keep you talking “So much for the girls day” you grumbled, wincing when she hit a bump and jostled your hand which made you hit your nose “Hey, it’s okay, we can move it to after our last finals” she assured, moving her hand to yours and taking it, giving it a squeeze in an attempt to keep you up “What do you want to do?” She asked, glancing over at you “Movies?” You asked, knowing it’d been a hot minute since you’ve watched one “We can do that, we can also go for a walk if you want to” “Too cold for that” you murmured, resting your head back against the headrest and Natasha feeling your fingers start to go lax in her grip “Hey, stay awake” she said, giving your hand a harsh squeeze which made you jump back awake, her doing everything she could to keep you awake.

When you were settled in your room, the doctors got your nose to stop bleeding and determined you had a mild concussion and that your nose was thankfully not broken, but it would bruise and swell as it healed “What a great look I’ll have” you sighed, looking at Natasha who gave you a small smile “You’ll look great either way” she said, that comment usually making your face burn, but your mind was too muddled from the concussion to be able to focus too much on what she had said, her looking at her phone when it vibrated “I have to take this” she said, giving your hand a small squeeze before she stood and headed out of the room.

A few moments later, Fury came in with a sweaty Carol “The rest of the team is right outside” she said, knowing everyone wanted to come in, but they couldn’t and that making your heart swell since you’ve never had a team like this before, hell you’ve never had friends like this before “How are you feeling?” Fury asked you as Carol went over to your bedside “Fine, nothing’s broken, the doctor is checking some final tests then they’ll release me” you said, sitting up some and looking over at Carol “We can wait for you, ride the bus back with us” she said, knowing they wouldn’t just leave you here “I can take them back” Natasha said, pocketing her phone as she came back into the room and Carol staring at her, the two seeming to have a silent conversation before Carol looked at you before she sighed when you nodded “Okay, text me when you get back, okay?” She asked, and you smiled “Of course” you said, watching as she gave your shoulder a squeeze before she headed out of the room “Oh, we won, the girls picked up the slack when you were knocked out, I’m very proud of you guys” Fury said, actually giving you a smile and you felt excitement start to bubble up in your chest “Thank you, Fury” you said, giving him a smile before you watched him head out.

You couldn’t help the small cheer you gave once Fury shut the door behind him “I told you that you guys could do it” Natasha said, smiling as you did a tiny happy dance, the pain meds making it to where your movements were sluggish, but it was cute to her all the same “I know, you need to stop being right” you said jokingly, smiling when Natasha laughed before she sat in the chair beside your bed “Bucky said that he hopes you get to feeling better” she said, crossing her legs “Tell him I said thank you” you said honestly, looking at her and trying to hide the yawn “You gotta stay awake for another hour” she said, reaching over and shaking you lightly “I know I know, just got a long car ride ahead” you said, looking at her and she smiled “We can pick something up on the way back” she assured, looking at you then looking at the door when it opened and the doctor stepped in.

Sighing, you watched the time on Natasha’s dash, desperately wanting it to be 2 o’clock so you could pass out, but you still had half an hour “So, what are you and Bucky gonna do when you go to his place?” You asked, the car ride having been silent for a while and you felt the need to break the silence “I don’t know, he wants me to meet his family then there’s this lake he talked about” she said, giving a small shrug as she glanced at you, the two of you talking about anything you could think of until you finally passed out in the seat, her unable to help herself when she was stopped at a stoplight, you looked so peaceful when you slept… She was falling for you, no matter how much she tried to deny it.

xxxxx

As the week went on, you watched as Natasha stressed over her science course, she was trying her hardest to be a vet, but science wasn’t her strong suit, you had helped her as much as you could since you were good at science, but there was only so much you could do, mostly due to the fact she was in a more advanced science class than you were.

Waking up the night before your last exam, you looked at your phone and saw it was almost 3am, sleepily rubbing your face and wincing when pain shot through your face “Ow, shit” you muttered, quickly pulling your hand away from your face “You okay?” Natasha asked, making you jump since you didn’t realize she was awake “I’m fine… Are you still studying?” You asked, seeing her with the lamp on by her bed and watching as she nodded before she looked back down at her book “You’re taking my job” you teased, getting out of bed before going and plopping down next to her, resting your head on her shoulder so that you could look at her book “You’re overstudying, you know?” You asked, reaching over and pulling the book from her grasp “Hey! Give it back!” She said, turning to take it from you, only for you to hide it behind your back “No, you need to stop-” you said, laughing when she tried to reach behind you, only causing you to fall onto your back “Give it back” she pouted, watching as you shook your head stubbornly “You need sleep” you said, not budging and watching as she huffed before leaning back against her headboard, giving you the chance to sit back up.

“I know you want to make absolute sure that you pass this test, but this is making it worse” you told her, going and shoving her book in her desk so she couldn’t easily grab it again “You need to-” stopping your lecture when you turned and saw that Natasha was already passed out, causing you to chuckle and shake your head before you went and readjusted her position so she was laying on her back before you tucked her in “Sleep well, Nat” you whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead without thinking before you shut her light off and crawled into bed yourself, then as soon as you got comfortable you realized what you had just done and smacked yourself on the forehead “Idiot” you muttered to yourself, sighing as you forced yourself to calm down enough for a fitful sleep.

Coming into the dorm room after your last final, you dropped your bag to the floor before collapsing onto the bed, feeling all your stress and anxiety start to fade away the longer you laid there until you heard a knock on your door, you stayed quiet, hoping that whoever it was would think that you weren’t there until you heard Wanda’s voice “Y/N, I know you’re in there, open the damn door” she said, causing you to sigh before you pushed yourself up and opened the door “Yes, just come on in” you said when she just walked past you when you opened it “What do you need?” You asked, opting to leave the door open since you knew she was just here to ask a question before she left to get ready to leave for break “Do you think I should ask Maria to come home with me?” She asked, looking at you and you raised an eyebrow “I mean, do you want her to? You guys just started dating like a few weeks ago” you said, knowing that only she could really answer that type of question “You’re right… I think I’ll just stay here anyway, there’s not much for me at home anyways” she said, walking past you and back down the hall “Wanda-” You tried to call, but she was already shutting her door and you sighed as you rested your forehead against the doorframe “Great job, Y/N” you muttered before going to start packing.

You had just zipped up your suitcase when Natasha came in, seeming to be rushing “Ready for our hangout night?” You asked, looking at her and watching as she froze when you said that “Dammit” she muttered before she turned to look at you, you knowing that look, it always meant she was about to apologize for something “Bucky told me yesterday that he wanted to leave today and I totally forgot and I-” “Nat, don’t… Have a good trip with Bucky” you said, dropping the clothes in your hands that you were going to change into for the night and storming out of the room “Y/N, wait-” Natasha tried, feeling immensely guilty as she went to follow you, only for you to slam the door in her face, you were upset, this was the third time this had happened in the past month, you needed to cool off.

When you got back from your walk around campus, you saw a note on your bed from Natasha, you rolling your eyes before you just shoved it in your nightstand drawer without reading it, checking the time on your phone to realize you had missed some calls from your mother, so you called her back “Hey mom, you on your way?” You asked, ready to get away from this place for a while “I can’t come get you…” Your mother said, you feeling your heart drop to your stomach as she explained that the car had broken down and that she couldn’t get anyone to fix it in time to get you before Christmas since everywhere was booked and she was stuck walking to work everyday “I’m so sorry, honey” she said, and you shook your head “It’s not your fault, mom… We can still facetime or something, I’ll be fine” you promised her, fighting back the tears until you and your mother said your goodbyes, you letting your phone fall to the floor as you slumped on your bed, letting the tears free fall, not only were you not talking to your best friend, you couldn’t even go home for Christmas, this break sucked already.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Winter break is here and is already starting badly, but with good friends and good times, it makes it all better, how long does that last though? Will you make it through the semester with everything being okay?

The next few days consisted of you laying in bed and just leaving to get food, you were upset, sure Wanda was there, but you figured she was hanging out with Maria and you knew Carol had gone home with her Maria, then there was Natasha who still hadn’t messaged you and was with Bucky, granted you hadn’t tried to reach out to her either, your face was healing, not as bruised and sore which you were grateful for since you were tired of trying to cover it up with makeup or with a scarf.

Now you were at the gym, trying to work out and abuse the fact that you had basically the whole gym to yourself, you beats in your ears and the music blaring through them, not even noticing how hard you were going until the treadmill beeped at you and you realized you had been running for about an hour, making it to almost 10 miles which was a new accomplishment for you “Shit” you muttered to yourself, feeling the treadmill start to slowly bring you down to a fast walk and you now feeling the workout come crashing down on you, your shirt and pants were soaked and your hair was sticking to your forehead from sweat, deciding to just shower there so you wouldn’t have to walk back to the dorms drenched.

When you got back to the dorms, you pushed open your door when you heard someone call your name down the hall “What are you still doing here?” Wanda asked, knowing you had told her you were leaving the other day and you sighed, letting her into the room before following her in, telling her what all had happened while you threw your gym clothes into your hamper and set your bag down to the side “Why didn’t you tell me? I could’ve hung out with you, you could’ve stayed in my room” Wanda said, looking at you from your bed as you sat down in your desk chair “I was upset, I didn’t want to talk to anyone really” you said honestly, watching as she nodded in understanding “Well, now that I know you’re here, we are going to hang out the entire time” she decided, causing you to laugh as you looked at her “What about Maria?” You asked, watching as she waved a hand at you in dismissal “She won’t mind, she likes you, plus I can still hang out with her in my own time” she said, looking at you and crossing her legs “Besides, no one deserves to be alone during the holidays” she said, going over and giving your shoulder a squeeze “You free tonight? We can watch shitty movies and eat pizza?” She offered and you smiled, nodding “Sounds great”.

xxxxx

The days went by even faster once you started hanging out with Wanda and Maria, they dragged you everywhere they possibly could, even dragging you out for a snowball fight, the three of you had become inseparable over the course of the two weeks, giving you the time to avoid thinking of everything else, that is, until Christmas day hit and you woke up by yourself in your dorm room, Maria and Wanda having stayed in Wanda’s room for the night “Merry Christmas to me” you whispered, looking out the window and seeing the snow piled high and it still coming down, looking over when you heard your phone vibrating on your bedside table.

Merry Christmas - Nat <3

Yeah… Merry Christmas - You

Not expecting a reply, you called your mother who picked up instantly “Merry Christmas, honey!” She cheered in your ear, bringing a smile to your face as you laughed “Merry Christmas to you too, mom… I wish I could be there” you said, pulling your legs up to sit criss-cross on your bed, leaning back against the wall “I know, I wish you could too, but we’ll make it up, I promise you that much” she said, you hearing the sad smile on her face through the phone “We will, what are your plans for the day?” You asked, the two of you slipping into conversation about anything and everything for a little over an hour before your mom had to get going since your aunt was picking her up for the family Christmas “Wish them merry christmas for me, yeah?” “I will honey, I love you” “I love you too” you said before you hung up and sighed, letting your phone drop onto your bed before you got up, planning to wear a nice outfit since even though you may not hang out with anybody, you still wanted to feel the Christmas spirit.

Once you got dressed, you grabbed your phone since you were going to take a little walk around, seeing a message from Wanda saying that they were going to get you in about an hour so you guys could make some cookies and stuff in the kitchen downstairs then there was one from Natasha

Can I call you? - Nat <3

You stood there, staring at the message… Did you want to talk to her? Of course you did, but did you think you could handle it? No, not if it was just going to be her talking about how great of a time she was having at Bucky’s… But she was your best friend, even if you two were fighting, taking the initiative, you hit the little call button and waited for Natasha to answer.

You didn’t have to wait long since she picked up after the first ring “Hey” she said, sounding a bit relieved “Hi” you said, biting your lip and unsure of what else to say “I’m so sorry for the other day… I didn’t mean to forget, my mind was everywhere” she apologized, you hearing some shuffling on her end and figuring she was resituating on a couch or something “That doesn’t make it okay, Nat” you said softly, picking at a loose string on your Christmas sweater “I know it doesn’t… I’m going to make it up to you, I promise” she said, the two of you falling silent for a few moments “How’s being at home?” She asked, breaking the silence and you felt your heart sink all over again “I uh-I’m not… My mom’s car broke down, so I’m stuck on campus” you admitted, hearing what sounded like something hitting the floor, her having sat up too quickly and knocked a crutch down, the ones she no longer had to use after being put into her walking boot a few days ago.

“You’re stuck at campus? Why didn’t you tell me? I’m coming back” she said, you hearing her stand up from wherever she was sitting “Nat, you don’t have to, Wanda and Maria are here, plus you’re supposed to be staying with Bucky and his family, you stay and have fun, I’ll be okay” you promised her, not wanting to be the one that ruined her holiday “But-” “Nat, just have fun, okay? Please? For me?” You asked, not wanting her to leave and come back just to be bored with you in the dorm “Okay” she said, sighing as she sat back down “Just… Text me, okay? Not talking to you was torture” she said, smiling a bit when she heard you laugh “Of course, have a good Christmas, Nat” you said, smiling some “You too, Y/N… I’ll see you in a few weeks” she said before the two of you hung up, you checking the time to see if you had time to go for your walk, but you had been talking to Natasha for almost forty-five minutes, Wanda and Maria would be there soon, so you decided to just scroll through TikTok while you waited.

Later that night, you, Wanda, and Maria were in the living area with pizza boxes, cookies, and beers piled on top of the coffee table there “Christmas Story?” Wanda asked, sitting in front of the movie box as she dug through it “That works for me” you said, grabbing yourself a slice of pizza and grabbing yourself a beer “Sounds good” Maria said, opening the beer bottle when you handed it to her, you unable to get it open yourself “You guys have your schedules all settled?” You asked as you watched Wanda pop the movie in “Oh yeah, my History and Politics advisor said this was the worst semester, I’m so ready” Maria said sarcastically, taking a sip of her beer as she wrapped an arm around Wanda after she got settled under the blankets beside her “Yeah yeah, complain all you want, this is my last semester of torture courses” Wanda said, her going for Physiological and Behavioral Sciences “Thankfully it’s not too mindnumbing” she said, reaching over and grabbing a slice of pizza, the three of you settling in for a night full of movies and drinking and good times.

xxxxx

It was now New Years Eve, people were slowly starting to trickle back onto campus and you hated to admit it, but you missed the peace and quiet the campus had to offer over the course of break, but with courses starting up again in two days, people were rushing to get back into the swing of things, you were reading a book in bed, having borrowed one from Maria who had a whole stash of them in her dorm room, your headphones in and your music blaring that you almost missed the door being open and Natasha carrying her bags and crutches, you looking up from your book and smiling as you quickly bookmarked it before you all but threw yourself at her “Hello to you too” she laughed, wrapping her arms snuggly around you “I thought you weren’t coming back till tomorrow” You said, pulling back and letting your earbuds hang from your neck “I wasn’t, but one of Bucky’s brothers were heading through this way for work and brought me back” she said, giving you a smile which you returned before you sat down on your bed, giving her room to unpack.

The two of you fell into comfortable silence, you reading your book and her unpacking, you felt at ease for once and it felt nice “Do you want to go get lunch?” Natasha asked, pulling you from your thoughts and you bookmarking and closing your book once more as you looked at her “Sure” you said, giving her a smile as you stood up once more “Let me just change” you said, going and grabbing some clothes since you were still in your pajamas.

Once you were changed, you followed her out of the room and that’s when you realized that she wasn’t using her crutches anymore “You got your cast off?” You asked, giving her a smile as she nodded “I did, took you long enough to notice” she teased, heading down the stairs with you trailing behind “Does that mean you get to play this season?” You asked, knowing she was really missing it “Yeah! I’ll miss the first game or so, but I’ll be in after that” she said, grinning at you as the two of you headed out of the dorm building.

Getting to the dining room, you sat down with Natasha sitting down across from you, the two of you talking about what you both had done over break “So, how was it?” You asked, looking at her and watching as she raised an eyebrow “How was what?” She asked, and you felt your face start to burn “You know-” you said, holding one hand with your thumb and pointer finger making a circle while sticking your pointer finger out on the other and pushing it through the circle which made Natasha laugh, smacking your hands down “What? You guys had ample opportunity!” You laughed, feeling your face burn even more “Well, that didn’t happen” she said, taking a bite of her potato soup “What?” You asked, trying to keep the hopefulness out of your voice as you looked at her “Yeah… I mean… He tried once, but..” she tried to explain and you reached over, placing your hand on hers “You don’t have to explain to me” you assured, giving her hand a small squeeze and watching as she nodded “What about you, what all did you do?” she asked, changing the subject which you welcomed wholeheartedly.

Heading back to the dorm, you got a message from Wanda inviting you to a party that was going to be in the living area of the building “Want to go to a party tonight?” You asked, looking at Natasha as the two of you headed inside “Who’s all going to be there?” She asked, holding the door open for you as you told her who all would be there, it mostly being your friend group and she smiled “Sure, it sounds fun” she said, giving you a smile as you two headed upstairs and into the dorm room, not making it far into the room before Wanda came barging in “Yes, come right in” you said sarcastically, looking at her and watching as she paced for a moment “Everything okay?” Natasha asked, looking at her and watching as Wanda looked confused from hearing her voice before she went back to pacing.

“Maria said she has a surprise for me tonight, you know me with surprises” Wanda said, continuing to pace until you went and placed your hands on her shoulders “Hey, I’m sure it’s nothing bad… She probably just got you something” you suggested, watching as she sighed and shifted from foot to foot “How about we all hang out and watch movies until the party? Get your mind off of it?” You suggested, glancing over at Natasha who nodded “Yeah, yeah that sounds good” Wanda sighed, letting you led her over to your bed, setting her down on your bed before you went to grab your laptop “Shit, I forgot my charger in your room” you said, looking at Wanda who tossed you her keys “Be right back” you said before leaving the room.

Once you were gone, Wanda turned her gaze to Natasha “Don’t hurt them” she said, having gotten a lot of texts from Natasha over break and having realized what was going on since they were all asking if you were okay with the occasional ask about Wanda “What?” Natasha asked, looking at her and her face having paled when Wanda said that “I know that you like them, just remember that you’re with Bucky right now, have been for half a year and I swear to god if you hurt them more than you have already-” Wanda said, her having gotten to the point with you that she thought of you as a sibling and getting cut off by Natasha “I won’t, I have no plans to… And Bucky, well, right now we aren’t sure” she admitted, knowing that their relationship was on rocky terms and watching as Wanda just nodded, going to say more but you had come back into the room “Who’s ready for some movies?” You asked, smiling at them and the two of them looking at you before you guys got settled in for the movies.

Later that night, you were pushing your way through people as you tried to carry the drinks for you and Natasha to her, her sitting on one of the many couches “Excuse me… Trying to get through!” you called over the music, managing to squeeze your way through to her and sitting down next to her all while handing her the beer “Thank you” she said, giving a small laugh before she opened it and took a drink “You ready for this semester?” You asked, leaning back against the couch and crossing your legs “I am, the break was nice but I’m ready to get back into it… What about you?” She asked, turning some to lean back against the armrest “I guess, not ready for my law courses” you said, taking a sip of your beer, not really fond of the brand they chose but hey, a drink was a drink “That’s literally your whole major” she laughed, reaching over and nudging your leg with her foot “Don’t remind me” you grumbled, receiving a laugh from her before you two fell into more conversation.

It was almost midnight, you had seen almost everything a party could have to offer that night, you saw someone streak out in the snow, you played truth or dare, Tony of course was passed out drunk, you watched people play seven minutes in heaven, and now you guys were watching the Times Square ball drop “10, 9 8!” Everyone chanted, you standing off to the side, watching as people paired off “7, 6, 5!” Too focused on watching everyone else, you didn’t notice Natasha approaching you “4, 3, 2!” Finally looking over at Natasha when you caught movement in your peripheral and giving her a smile “Hey-” you getting cut off by her lips on yours after everyone chanted one then cheered ‘Happy New Year!’, you weren’t sure how to feel, you were frozen on the spot, Natasha was there… Natasha was there kissing you! But she was still with Bucky, no matter how much you wished this felt right(in a way it did), it just felt so… Wrong.

When you pulled back, Natasha looked at you with a tiny smile which faded when she saw the pained look on your face “Don’t do this to me” you whispered, currently fighting back tears as you bit your lip “What do you mean?” She asked, raising an eyebrow at you “Are you breaking up with Bucky or have any plan to?” You asked, looking at her and anger boiling up in you when she said nothing before you shoved her away “I am going to make this very clear and as quietly as I possibly can, so I apologize for the yelling, but…” you said, looking at her and feeling the tears start to fall down your cheeks “Y/N-” she tried, only for you to raise your voice “Do not… DO NOT come into my life if you are going to play around with my feelings! Do not sit there and kiss me and tell me that you care about me-” “Y/N, please” she begged, feeling all the eyes on you two, you having not noticed that everyone was watching or the fact that the music was no longer blaring “-and that you want to see me happy if you are going to do shit like this!” you shouted, covering your mouth for a moment to try to calm yourself “I can’t do this with you anymore, Nat” you whispered, finally looking around and seeing everyone staring before you turned and bolted out of the room, Wanda trying to call for you but you bolted out, her turning to glare at Natasha before she ran after you, Natasha sitting there under everyone’s gaze, fighting back her own tears, but she knew she deserved this, she deserved it all.

xxxxx

Two weeks had passed since the events of New Years Eve, you had avoided Nat like the plague and she tried to give you the space you needed, like when the two of you were in the dorm together, there was nothing but silence between the two of you which was nothing but tense and awkward, but you ignored it, focusing mostly on your classwork, or going to the gym, or hanging out with Wanda or Carol, Bucky questioned why you no longer hung out with them, to which Nat told him it was none of his business… But it was his business, she kissed you and they were still dating, you felt terrible everytime you saw him walking by, even though the whole thing wasn’t your fault.

While you were at the gym one day, Natasha had finally been able to go to a practice for the softball team, having been released from her walking boot, having been told to not go too hard too quickly, she was up to practice batting while Wanda was pitching, Wanda’s face neutral as she pitched, making it almost impossible for Natasha to hit it with the speed she was bringing with each pitch until finally Natasha was able to hit the ball, it going directly towards Wanda’s face at an alarming speed, her catching it last second “What the hell, Nat?” she exploded, glaring at her which Nat returned “You’re the one throwing impossible to hit balls!” She retaliated, dropping the bat in her hand while Wanda approached her “You’re the one who doesn’t know how to stay in their lane!” She shouted, the two of them diving into an argument until the coach interfered “You two cool off, this happens again, you’re both benched” he threatened, making both of them shut their mouths “Yes coach” they both said before they headed for the dugout, silently grabbing their things before they headed out in heated silence.

“I told you not to hurt them” Wanda finally spoke when they were halfway to the dorms, causing Natasha to stop which in turn made Wanda stop “I didn’t mean to hurt them, I don’t know what I was thinking… I-Dammit! I ruined everything! That’s not how I wanted it to go!” Natasha admitted, tears filling her eyes as she ran her hand through her messy ponytail and having not been able to forgive herself for what she had done to you “What do you mean?” Wanda asked, wanting to hear her side of this since while she supported you the most, she still wanted to give Natasha a chance to talk “I was going to break up with Bucky before break, we were having issues and then they convinced me to talk with him and we stayed together, but over break all I could think about was them… I wanted to drop everything and come back here when they told me they couldn’t go home, but they told me to stay and have fun… I tried, but I don’t feel what I feel with them when I’m alone with Bucky… I’m an idiot” she said, shaking her head and Wanda stood there, conflicted.

Before Wanda could say anything, Natasha spoke up again “I was going to break up with Bucky a few days after he came back, but then I fucked it all up by kissing Y/N on New Years Eve… Now they won’t talk to me and I can’t help but feel guilty every time I hang out with Bucky… I love them, Wanda… More than I’ve ever loved anyone” she admitted softly, her head down and staring at her shoes “Well… As much as I don’t want to… I’m going to give you a word of advice” Wanda said, watching as Natasha looked at her once more “Start by rekindling your friendship with them… They miss you, they’re suffering, Nat… All they do is study and go work out for longer than they should and when we do hang out, they barely say anything… I dislike you right now for what you did, but you’re the only one who can pull them out of this” she said, looking at her and checking her phone when it buzzed “I have to go… Good luck” she said, turning on her heel before heading off, leaving Natasha to wonder what she could do to gain your forgiveness.

When she got back, she saw you on your bed, your headphones in and scrolling through your phone, obviously taking a break from your homework, she stayed silent as she set her bag down before pulling her shoes off, sitting on her bed and messing with her hands for a moment before she waved at you, causing you to look up and look at her, a mix of emotions flashing across your face before you settled on a neutral look, watching as she pointed to her ear, telling you to pull your headphone out which you did “Can we talk?” She asked, looking at you and watching as you thought before you nodded and paused your music, tossing your phone and headphones to the side before you looked at her and gestured for her to start talking.

“I’m so sorry for what I did… It was honestly unforgivable… I shouldn’t have done it” she said, holding her hand up when you went to speak “Let me finish… Please?” She asked, watching as you gave a small nod after you snapped your mouth shut “I was an asshole, it wasn’t fair to you or Bucky, I shouldn’t have done it… But I did and I’m sorry… What I’m trying to ask here is… Can we start over? I miss you and I want my best friend back” she said, looking at you and you bet your lip before sighing “A simple sorry isn’t going to make anything better, Nat-” you said, watching as she nodded “But…” You said, watching as her head snapped up from looking at her hands to looking at you, a hopeful look on her face “I’m willing to start over” you said, standing up and going over to her, holding your hand out “I’m Y/N Y/L/N, I’m a law major and I play Volleyball” you said, looking at her and smiling when she took your hand with a smile on her face “Natasha Romanoff, I’m a veterinary medicine major and I play softball” she said, giving your hand a firm shake “Well, Miss Romanoff, looks like we have a lot to make up for”.

xxxxx

A few days later, you were heading to the gym with Carol, the two of you having a lot more free time since the volleyball season was on hold for the time being “Did you hear what Professor Fury told someone today?” You asked, holding the door to the gym open for her “Maybe, I wasn’t really listening” she said, thanking you before she headed inside “So, you know Martin?” You asked, watching as she nodded, the two of you heading into the locker room “Well, he asked this really dumb question about the history project and Professor Fury just tells him-” clearing your throat “I know most would say there’s no stupid questions, but that was the stupidest question I’ve ever heard, think about it and get back to me-” you said in your best Fury impression “Then he muttered something about him being a motherfucker or something” you laughed, hearing Carol laugh with you as the two of you changed into your workout gear “That’s like his catchphrase, it’s always motherfucker this or motherfucker that” she said, making you laugh harder and the two of you throwing back and forth your best impressions of Fury until you both were laughing so hard, you were crying and getting stared at by anyone else that entered the locker room.

Once you guys finally finished your workout, you both showered and changed before heading out “I love this time of the year” you said, smiling as the sun warmed your face “I’m just glad the snow is gone and that volleyball starts up again soon” Carol said, walking beside you as the two of you made your way to get some food “Are you going to the softball game tonight?” She asked, knowing that you and Natasha were slowly rebuilding your friendship, but she wasn’t sure where you guys were at just yet “Yeah, Wanda asked me to come, are you?” You asked, looking at her and watching her nod “Yeah, Maria’s dragging me there” she chuckled, heading into the dining facility and holding the door open for you this time, you both falling into conversation as you got your food and ate.

Getting back to the dorm, you tossed your bag onto the floor and sat down on your bed, you had about twenty minutes before you had to head out again, you weren’t going to waste it, you laying on your bed and scrolling through your phone as you let it charge, your mind idly drifting to Natasha and how you were glad you both were friends again maybe that’s all we’ll ever be you thought to yourself, causing you to close your eyes and shake the thought from your head, even though you knew it was true, she still had Bucky and they were a good couple… You were fine with being just the best friend, no matter how much it drained you, you would always do whatever you could for Nat.

At the game, you were sitting in the front row with Carol and Maria and cheering for Wanda who was up to bat when you saw someone sit next to you, looking over, you saw Bucky sitting there, giving you a small smile before offering some popcorn to you “No, but thank you” you said nicely, smiling awkwardly and Bucky just shrugged and laughed as he looked out at the field “More for me” he said, completely oblivious about the tense air between you two and Carol nudged you “Want to switch spots?” She asked, looking at you and willing to switch you if you wanted “No, it’s fine, I just have to not make it awkward” you said, waving off her question.

And oh boy… Did it get awkward… Bucky tried to talk to your throughout the game, only receiving short answers from you and when Natasha was up to bat, you would both cheer her on, but Bucky would add in the word babe and make you bite your lip as you sat down once more, the awkwardness got worse, the longer the game went, until you couldn’t take it anymore “I gotta pee” you finally said, standing up and quickly rushing to where the bathrooms were, when you got in there, you just leaned forward against one of the sinks and stared at yourself in the mirror “Stop. Making. It. Awkward” you told yourself, sighing as you splashed your face with some water after a moment, drying it with a paper towel and taking a moment to catch your breath before you felt calmer to go back out.

But, when you got back out, the game was over and Natasha was already over with Bucky, the two of them talking in hushed tones and you took that as a que to go and find Wanda and Carol… Natasha dragged Bucky over to the side, him having just asked her to come home with him for Spring Break which was a little over a month away “Bucky… I can’t” she said, looking at him and he furrowed his brow “Why not? My family loved you” he said, reaching over and taking her hand which she pulled away, making him frown “I can’t because I can’t do this anymore… I’m so sorry” she said softly, watching as he ducked his head and looked at his shoes for a moment “Its them, isn’t it?” He asked, looking up and meeting her eyes, her looking confused for a moment before he looked over her shoulder at you, causing her to turn and look at what he was looking at “Its always been them, I’ve just been too stupid to realize it” she admitted, looking at him once more as he nodded in understanding.

“You know.. I thought I really stood a chance in the beginning, then I started seeing the way you looked at them and how you acted around them… And I knew I didn’t stand a chance, but I’m grateful for how long you gave me” he said honestly, reaching over and taking her hand to give it a small squeeze “We’re still friends, you know?” Natasha said, looking at him and Bucky smiled “I’m glad… But, give me some time… It’ll be hard to get over you” he said, looking at her and she nodded “Okay… I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you sooner” she apologized, looking at him and he shook his head “You have nothing to be sorry about… Good luck, Nat” he said, giving her hand one last squeeze before he headed off, her turning to see you laughing as you talked to the others, making her smile before she went and joined the group, feeling a weight lift off of her shoulders.

xxxxx

A few days after the game, you and Natasha were hanging out in your dorm room, the door open along with the window since the AC had decided to go out so it was a bit on the warm side “Can we please go and do something?” She asked, looking at you and her laying on her bed with her head hanging off the side, looking at you upside-down “Like what?” You asked, looking up from your book and unable to stop your eyes from looking over her, her being in a red tank-top and black shorts, quickly looking at her face when she moved her arms to point at you “We could go to the pool!” She exclaimed, looking at you and you scrunched your nose and shook your head “Just like everyone else? No thanks” you said, knowing the pool would be crowded and ignoring the pout from Natasha until she sat up quickly and looked at you with a smile “There is a lake not far from here” she said, going and sitting down next to you “We can invite our friends and just have a good time” she said, giving you a pout that you couldn’t ignore and you sighed before marking your page and closing your book “Okay, lets go” you said, chuckling softly when she bounced up and down in excitement, looking like a kid that just got told they could have the candy they wanted and you couldn’t help but feel a flutter in your chest, you had it bad for her, even after everything that had happened.

Once you guys got there, you piled out of the two cars, Carol having drove her car while Nat drove hers “Much less crowded than the pool” you said, only seeing maybe a handful of people around and Natasha grinned as she grabbed her bag from the trunk “I told ya, only a few people know of this place” she said, the lake being a hidden gem that she had found the year before “Yeah yeah, you were right” you chuckled, grabbing your bag and heading with her to a clear spot with the others “I brought some food for when we get hungry” Wanda said, lugging a small cooler behind her while Maria carried the freezer bag that held the food “You are a lifesaver” you said, smiling at Wanda who returned the smile, looking over at Carol and her Maria as they set up a hammock between two trees, biting your lip to keep from laughing when Carol went to get on it, only for the whole thing to flip and her to faceplant on the ground below, Maria though didn’t even try to hide her laughter, her hunched over and laughing much to Carol’s displeasure.

You looked back over at Natasha, who was already pulling her tanktop and shorts off, having kicked her flip flops off next to her bag and you felt your face heat up when she pulled her shirt off, her abs were slowly starting to make an appearance again, from not being able to workout for almost three months, she still looked really good “Are you coming?” Natasha asked you, making your burning face burn even more at being caught looking “Yeah, I’ll be there in a moment!” You said, flustered beyond belief and wringing your hands out, jumping when something rubbery hit you on the side of your face, looking down and seeing it was one of Wanda’s rubber bouncy balls, she had an obsession of collecting those “Just go, will you” she chuckled when you finally looked at her, rolling her eyes when you didn’t move and going over to you, turning you towards Natasha and giving you a small shove “Go”.

Heading over to Natasha, you kept reminding yourself you had nothing to worry about with her, just cause she was freshly single, didn’t mean she had any intentions of going for you or anyone for that matter, she was your best friend and you were hers, you shouldn’t be awkward around her, but you couldn’t help it when you had this draw to her since the beginning, too lost in thought, you didn’t hear her ask you a question when you got closer to her “Huh?” You asked, having seen her mouth moving “I said, you aren’t gonna come in with that on, are you?” She asked, her already in the water and referring to your clothes still being on “Oh… Right” you said, shaking your head clear before you stripped your outer clothes and dropped them with Natasha’s, kicking your sandals off before heading into the water, freezing up for a moment when it was colder than you thought it’d be before you moved further into the water.

Once you got to Natasha, she smiled at you “Nice of you to finally join me” she teased, splashing lightly towards you which you retaliated back “So sorry I had something else to do” you teased, looking at her and watched as she leaned back to float on her back “This is nice” she said, closing her eyes as she let herself float “Yeah, you have good ideas… Sometimes” you said, laughing when she splashed you once more “Shush you” she chuckled, the two of you enjoying the peace until it was broken by Carol shouting nonsense before she ran into the water, effectively ending the peace as she hid behind you “What did you do now?” You asked, looking at her over your shoulder “Nothing” she lied, peeking over your shoulder and you looked at the edge of the lake, seeing Maria standing there with her hands on her hips and her face covered in mud “Oh, you’re dead” you laughed, watching as Maria approached you guys “You can’t hide behind them, Carol!” She said, heading towards you guys and you did the best thing you could think of and went under the water just as Maria lunged for Carol.

Later that night, you guys had been at the lake for hours and it was starting to get dark, you guys were piling back into the vehicles and when you looked in the backseat, you saw Wanda and Maria passed out, which you understood, today was fun but exhausting and all you wanted to do was sleep, but Natasha was driving, you didn’t want to leave her alone “Today was fun” you said, resting your arm on the center console as she drove “It was, we need to do it again” she said, smiling some as she glanced at you “You don’t have to stay awake, you can sleep” she said, resting her arm on the center console as well and as much as you wanted to pull your arm away, you didn’t “Its fine, tomorrow is Sunday, I can sleep in” you said, looking at her and the two of you slipping into a comfortable silence, you laying your head back against the headrest until you felt a warmth on your arm and looked over to see Natasha lacing your fingers together, neither of you saying anything and you couldn’t help the smile that grew on your face, her holding your hand the rest of the ride to the campus.

xxxxx

As the weeks went by, yours and Natasha’s relationship was getting stronger than ever, the two of you did everything together, like it used to be, you guys hung out all the time and hung out with all your friends together, you guys hadn’t breached past the holding hands and cuddling stage, but there was definitely something between you two, neither of you would say it though.

Bucky was still in the picture, he had become a really good friend to you guys and was even seeing someone else, some new guy that came mid-semester named Steve, you were happy for him and he was happy for you guys, not like you guys were actually anything since you guys never brought up that topic, not like you minded since you guys were both focused on school.

Heading towards the softball field since volleyball practice was cancelled due to Fury saying “I have other matters to handle, I do believe you all can handle yourselves for the night” before he released you guys for the afternoon, looking up from your phone when you heard laughter, you smiled and shook your head when you saw Wanda chasing Natasha around the field with a bat, shouting about how she was going to end her, but they were both laughing as they did so “Will you two focus!” The coach finally shouted, causing Natasha to stop and Wanda to ram into her since she had not been paying much attention “Sorry, sir!” They both shouted, Natasha releasing Wanda since she had caught her before she could fall over.

You sat on the bleachers and watched as they practiced until it started to sprinkle, you grabbing your hoodie out of your bag and pulling it on with the hood up, that being just when it started to rain harder “Alright, everyone head out… Good practice” the coach said, watching as the team ran into the dugout and got their things, you waving at Wanda and Maria who were heading towards you “We’re going out for dinner tonight at the diner if you want to join us” Wanda told you, looking at you as they passed you “Sure, let me know when you guys head out” you smiled, giving them a wave as they headed for the parking lot and turning back just as Natasha headed out of the dugout.

“Hey you” Natasha said, smiling at you as she took your hand and the two of you headed towards the dorm room “You looked good out there” you said, giving her a smile as you lightly swung your joined hands “Thank you, you looked good sitting there” she teased, lightly nudging you as you passed by the small park in the middle of campus, that of course being when it decided to downpour, the two of you screaming in surprise until she pulled you under a gazebo nearby, the two of you laughing as you shook off the water on your hoods.

When you both met eyes again, you smiled “Hi” you said, realizing how close you both were “Hi” she whispered, her lightly biting her lip before she slowly wrapped an arm around you and gently cupped your face “I-” she said, getting cut off when you surged forward and crushed your lips against hers, the two of you melting into the kiss before you had to pull back for air “You don’t know how much I’ve wanted to do that” you admitted with a small laugh “Oh, I think I know” she said, smiling and pressing another kiss to your lips, just holding you as the rain seemed to slowly calm down “Should we head back?” She asked, looking at you and you smiled “We should… Wanda did invite me to dinner” you said, laughing when Natasha looked offended “She didn’t invite me!” She exclaimed, you laughing as you led her out from under the gazebo, the two of you laughing and talking the whole way back to the dorm, this year having been a crazy one, but you wouldn’t have it any other way.


End file.
